rockridgecattle
Well-known member
Ya know some days just go not as planned but hum along. I however do not think the cow would concure.
It has been quiet on the calving front. In that end of the season lul. Hubby is driving the school bus and tells me to check at 4.
Out i go, there is a cow who we knew would be calving. She is bawling, a possible sign of trouble in my books. But since it was an hour since hubby checked, and he said she had not passed her water, I thought i would give it a few minutes to see what was up. She was up and then down, then up, unsettled. Gave her about 15 minutes, still bawling then to the food. Now since she was eating, my chance to check the back end for the residue from dropping the water.
A little more red than i would like. So got her to the mat pen, gloved up and feet are sticking straight into the spine and the knuckes are bending the wrong way. Follow the feet....down. Feel the hip bones down by the lower gut area of the cow....oh boy. Alone on the farm, stupid me leaves the cell phone on the table at home (just under the 1/2 mile mark from home). Calf sack not broke, can not find the tail, but did not want to route around too long. Pinched the calf feet between the hoofs...alive.
Decide what to do. The wind is from the direction of home and i hear the back up alarm in the distance from the school bus. Hubby is home!
Close up the mat pen's back gate incase the cow finds a way to get out of the head gate (murphy's law) and runs. Walk, not run, through barn pen close to some cows who are close to calve so as to not get kicked. Get to the gate and run out run through the main herd pen (13 left in it). Run full out 400+ feet to the Rav4 ( our now 4 wheeler since the bike broke down)
Asthma attack, can not breathe. However...cow in distress, suck it up...get help, die later. Get in the car, Mach 2 home, slowing down for the mud ruts. Fly into the yard, run into the house.
Manage to say "Cow, Upside down, backwards, meds....now! (for me and the cow) MOVE!!!"
Take my inhalers, run and grab the oxy from the fridge...in the car and go. (oxy has to stay cold, no electricity at the calving area except for the generator)
Did i mention big huge feet on the calf? Ya monster calves this year.
Since i can not breath well, hubby calls a friend. Upside down and backwards means birthing over the top of the cow.
At the pen, i get the chains on, hubby pulls (I found the tail) While hubby puts on pressure, i get the tail, friend ready to grab the calf and haul it over the back of the cow.
Some how between the first check, the second check for the tail, and pulling, the calf twists and come out tail top side instead of under. Cow pushes with the pressure, does most of the work, calf comes out and will not breathe. Couple of well placed straws in the nostrils ( ok just grabbed and tickled) and some good shakes and rubs and it starts to breath then throws the head back...again with the ears, straw, nose straw and some good shakes and rubs and now the calf is heads up. Was getting ready to draw the emergency stuff...but did not need it.
Place the calf in front of the cow and check the uterus for some tears and scoup out liquid. A little bloody, does not feel too bad inside. Give cow the oxy since the birth falls under the usage guidelines set out by the vet.
Calf is alive and has sucked, cow working on cleaning, priceless. And thanks sent upwards.
It has been quiet on the calving front. In that end of the season lul. Hubby is driving the school bus and tells me to check at 4.
Out i go, there is a cow who we knew would be calving. She is bawling, a possible sign of trouble in my books. But since it was an hour since hubby checked, and he said she had not passed her water, I thought i would give it a few minutes to see what was up. She was up and then down, then up, unsettled. Gave her about 15 minutes, still bawling then to the food. Now since she was eating, my chance to check the back end for the residue from dropping the water.
A little more red than i would like. So got her to the mat pen, gloved up and feet are sticking straight into the spine and the knuckes are bending the wrong way. Follow the feet....down. Feel the hip bones down by the lower gut area of the cow....oh boy. Alone on the farm, stupid me leaves the cell phone on the table at home (just under the 1/2 mile mark from home). Calf sack not broke, can not find the tail, but did not want to route around too long. Pinched the calf feet between the hoofs...alive.
Decide what to do. The wind is from the direction of home and i hear the back up alarm in the distance from the school bus. Hubby is home!
Close up the mat pen's back gate incase the cow finds a way to get out of the head gate (murphy's law) and runs. Walk, not run, through barn pen close to some cows who are close to calve so as to not get kicked. Get to the gate and run out run through the main herd pen (13 left in it). Run full out 400+ feet to the Rav4 ( our now 4 wheeler since the bike broke down)
Asthma attack, can not breathe. However...cow in distress, suck it up...get help, die later. Get in the car, Mach 2 home, slowing down for the mud ruts. Fly into the yard, run into the house.
Manage to say "Cow, Upside down, backwards, meds....now! (for me and the cow) MOVE!!!"
Take my inhalers, run and grab the oxy from the fridge...in the car and go. (oxy has to stay cold, no electricity at the calving area except for the generator)
Did i mention big huge feet on the calf? Ya monster calves this year.
Since i can not breath well, hubby calls a friend. Upside down and backwards means birthing over the top of the cow.
At the pen, i get the chains on, hubby pulls (I found the tail) While hubby puts on pressure, i get the tail, friend ready to grab the calf and haul it over the back of the cow.
Some how between the first check, the second check for the tail, and pulling, the calf twists and come out tail top side instead of under. Cow pushes with the pressure, does most of the work, calf comes out and will not breathe. Couple of well placed straws in the nostrils ( ok just grabbed and tickled) and some good shakes and rubs and it starts to breath then throws the head back...again with the ears, straw, nose straw and some good shakes and rubs and now the calf is heads up. Was getting ready to draw the emergency stuff...but did not need it.
Place the calf in front of the cow and check the uterus for some tears and scoup out liquid. A little bloody, does not feel too bad inside. Give cow the oxy since the birth falls under the usage guidelines set out by the vet.
Calf is alive and has sucked, cow working on cleaning, priceless. And thanks sent upwards.
